Isaac's Garden

I remember a former coworker telling the story of her 5 year old asking about those red rocks growing on the tree...it was an apple tree. Something that grows rampant around here. She was shocked to discover that her child thought all food came from grocery stores, so she immediately went home and planted a garden with her child.  Smart mother.

We've had a picking garden in years past (strawberries & peas primarily) but Isaac had not been a part of the seeding and planting. He was a vigorous water-er but I assume he thought the plants with food on them just magically appeared one day...which technically is true, thank you Home Depot plant starters. 

This year he got to be apart of the delicate seeding & planting process. What fun to see his face light up as he clearly understood the process taking place!  He picked out peas, pumpkins and carrots, but he has been particularly excited about the 'cup-kins'. 

This chart was supposed to be a quick guide frankly so I could remember what we planted and where, but it ended up being an accidental and fantastic fine motor skills and math project for him. Whoohoo!

One week later. The peas are coming up first!

Week two. Crazy peas and nice strong cup-kins. (lets not talk about the carrots--the garden fairy may need to be called in for after hours support on those.)

Time to plant in the garden!

He transplanted. Added a few extra seeds for moral support. Watered diligently and took his leave. It's all up to you now Mother Nature!

Jesus' Owie

It's Easter and we've been doing a lot of reading about the meaning of Easter--of Jesus's death & resurrection; of His deep, deep love for us all. It's a hard concept to wrap your brain around. And sometimes when you've always known the Easter story, it's hard to find new awareness of that amazing love. Sometimes it takes a child to fan the flames a little.  Isaac's response to this picture is what did it for me...

Just recently our evening Bible reading brought us to the Resurrection story. In an effort to plant seeds, not necessarily cultivate understanding, I read each word diligently to the boy draped across my shoulders. He was flipping my hair and drinking his milk and wiggling his toes (a nonstop thing for him). I turned to this page, ready to read the words that followed and Isaac GASPED:  "Jesus. Owie! Oh No." and began to sign 'band aid' over and over again. 

Wait. What?  

Of all the dots and lines on this page, he saw the single point on the nondescript hand and knew it was caused by pain??   

I was floored. And then my heart melted as Isaac proceeded to put a pretend band aid on Jesus' hand--taking care to put it just so.  (We keep a stash of pretend band aids close by at all times just in case). 

Did my young son understand the full ramifications of that dot on the hand? Probably not. Did he see a hurt and try to minister to it...Yes. Jesus's pain was 'fixed' by Isaac's (invisible) band aid.  The magnitude of what that little act must of done to the Lord's heart right then & there brought me to utter tears as I sat on the couch. 

Sometimes as adults we just make everything so darn complicated.

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Easter this year was simple and joyful: Remembrance. Forgiveness. Thankfulness. Hope...that is what Easter's redemption has brought to this family.  I am so very thankful that Jesus' owie is why we are alive in Him forever. <3

 The Annual Easter Cousins photo...Max isn't so sure about his goof-ball cousin. :)

Easter dinner made in under an hour. Delish!

Easter basket...his very own umbrella. He is truly in hog heaven now!

Hunting the eggs he dyed yesterday:

Disneyland 2017

I didn't ever plan on us being a Disney family, but it kind of happened and I'm kinda OK with it. I take pride in making our trips to the Happiest Place on Earth wildly affordable and seeing the magic of Disneyland grow as Isaac grows is unbelievably fun. So off to SoCal for our now annual trip to Disney:

Pre-flight Starbucks with Gramma. No thanks to the apple juice. This boy prefers a chai tea latte.

Pre-flight sillies with Momma:

Flying over this hunk of dirt never gets old. I love me some Mt. Rainier. <3

DAY 1:

After arriving and beating LA traffic we spent the afternoon in Downtown Disney doing an Eggstravaganza egg hunt. I wasn't sure if Isaac would like it, but he certainly figured it out quickly, signing "More. Egg. Same" and pointing to his stickers and the Disney themed eggs he had found. 

The most unexpected "egg" we found during our hunt was a family we traveled with in China and Isaac's "adoption cousin" Liam. What are the chances that among 55,000 of our closest Disney friends, we just happen to bump into a family we met once and haven't seen in 4.5 years?!  Isaac seemed to instantly recognize his little buddy:

DAY 2: 

Up early for a character breakfast in the park. Isaac didn't seem nearly as impressed with the characters this year as he did the last few years. He was also famished--pushing away several costumed visitors who got too close to his bacon. 

With a full tummy, diligently assessing the map.

Nemo's submarine adventure. I wish I could have captured the look on his face when the underwater volcano erupted.  It was a solid mix of "Do that again! BUT...notify the authorities first, just to be safe"

We successfully saved the galaxy from the evil Emperor Zurg! 

He still needed a mid-day snooze every day. <3

The Sound-sational Parade. Good heavens did he enjoy this!

We had our own little hunt for the Little Man of Disneyland and his secret hiding place...with a little help, we found it!! The next time you are in Adventure Land make sure to keep your eye's peeled for his little home. :) 

DAY 3: 

A little bit of a later start to our day at California Adventure. We got a special one-on-one with Minnie---I love this series of photos:

Frozen. Until six months ago, it has been the heart of my child's life for the last three years. (Thank you Curious George for the cartoon coup). But after seeing the life action production, I'm pretty sure Anna & Elsa have reclaimed their rightful thrones.  (It was truly AMAZING!)

Little Mermaid. My childhood favorite--and I sang through the entire ride ;)  Upon request, the nice people of Disney provide a light-up magic wand for little ones that may be a little nervous with the dark ride. Isaac did great with his wand, I sang my heart out and I'm pretty sure Gramma  just stared at us both. :)

Spraying his own face with bubbles!

Let's just take a moment to talk about the world's greatest ice cream sundae of ALL. FREAKING. TIME. Ghiradelli brownies, Ghiradelli carmel, ice cream straight from the sacred cows of Hollywood hills, whipped whole cream with a sprinkling of sea salt. Good lord. I don't know what is worse though...the fact that there is no 'before' picture or that you can clearly see the 'after'.  Don't judge. They don't call it the Happiest Place on Earth for no reason!

Luigi's Rocking Roadsters:

Disney rides are fun, but we always enjoy just strolling and enjoying the atmosphere and street entertainment. the 5&Dime Swing Band kept us busy for quite a while.

Day 4:
A lazy morning of swimming and play. Last night we were up late enjoying the World of Color at California Adventure. Totally worth the late night!

The Jungle Cruise. The jokes never get old...I laugh every time. 

I tried the Grey Stuff--it's delicious!  Don't believe me? Ask the dishes! (it was really good!)

The last ride of the trip was his absolute FAVORITE...Small World.  He was in absolute awe signing repeatedly: "Beautiful! More boat. Beautiful. Go. More. Beautiful!" The camera was on the fritz but the photo capture in my mind is permanent. <3

We finished our trip with the Electric Parade and the Fireworks over Sleeping Beauty's castle followed by the long waddle back to the hotel.  It was a good trip. A bit over crowded so it will be our last Disney trip during spring break, but seeing the joy on your child's face after they've found Nemo or saved the galaxy from Emperor Zurg or discovered their favorite ride (not to mention the Ghiradelli sundae),  it's kind of all worth it.